Quick facts for kids Persian Gulf War |
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Belligerents | |||||||
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Strength | |||||||
956,600, including 700,000 US troops | 650,000 soldiers | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Coalition: |
Iraqi: 25,000–50,000 75,000+ wounded 80,000 captured 3,300 tanks destroyed 2,100 APCs destroyed 2,200 Artillery Pieces destroyed 110 Aircraft destroyed 137 Aircraft escaped to Iran 19 naval ships sunk, 6 damaged |
The Persian Gulf War, sometimes just called the Gulf War, was a conflict between Iraq and 34 other countries, led by the United States. It started with the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq on August 2, 1990. Iraq had long claimed Kuwait as part of its territory. The war ended the following spring when Iraq's armies were defeated. There were two military operations.
Operation Desert Shield brought troops to protect Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states that Iraq had not attacked.
Operation Desert Storm attacked Iraq's forces both in Kuwait and in Iraq. It started on 17 January, 1991 with an air strike. Ground operations started 24 February. Iraqi forces set fire to oil wells to slow the attack.The war ended on 28 February, 1991 with a ceasefire.
The long Iran–Iraq War had ended in August 1988. Iraq owed a great amount of money to Saudi Arabia and had difficulty paying it back. Saddam Hussein declared the neighboring country of Kuwait to be siphoning Iraqi crude oil from across the border, and on August 2nd, 1990 the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait started. On January 17, 1991 the US began the Persian Gulf War with a massive US led air offensive known as Operation Desert Storm.
The attacks were assisted by newly developed weapons, including stealth aircraft, cruise missiles and smart bombs.
After 42 days of fighting U.S. President Bush declared a ceasefire on February 28. By that time most Iraqi forces in Kuwait had either surrendered or fled.
Operation Desert storm included a bombing campaign that targeted Iraqi aircraft, anti-aircraft systems, oil refineries, weapon factories, bridges, and roads. The war was a lopsided victory for coalition forces. President George Bush decided not to depose Saddam Houssein.
Political issues after Operation Desert Storm lead to the second Persian Gulf War in 2003.
Related pages
Images for kids
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Kuwaiti Armed Forces M-84 main battle tanks.
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President Bush visiting American troops in Saudi Arabia on Thanksgiving Day, 1990.
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Saddam Hussein detained several Westerners, with video footage shown on state television
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General Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr. and President George H. W. Bush visit US troops in Saudi Arabia on Thanksgiving Day, 1990.
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Dick Cheney meets with Prince Sultan, Minister of Defence and Aviation in Saudi Arabia to discuss how to handle the invasion of Kuwait
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Gen. Colin Powell (left), Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr., and Paul Wolfowitz (right) listen as Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney addresses reporters regarding the 1991 Gulf War.
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The USAF F-117 Nighthawk, one of the key players in Desert Storm.
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Donald Rumsfeld as US special envoy to the Middle East, meets Saddam Hussein on 19–20 December 1983.
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Iraqi Type 69 tank on the road into Kuwait City during the Gulf War.
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The oil fires caused were a result of the scorched earth policy of Iraqi military forces retreating from Kuwait
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Remains of downed F-16C
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Civilians and coalition military forces wave Kuwaiti and Saudi Arabian flags as they celebrate the retreat of Iraqi forces from Kuwait.
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British Army Challenger 1 main battle tank during Operation Desert Storm.
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The USS Missouri launches a Tomahawk missile. The Gulf War was the last conflict in which battleships were deployed in a combat role (as of 2017)
